Summary: Microsoft's Windows Server 2008 is getting an additional two years of extended support.

Microsoft has added two years of optional extended support for Windows Server 2008 to its product-support roadmap.

Initially, Microsoft windows Hosting server 2008 was supposed to shift from no cost, popular assistance, to prolonged, compensated assistance on September 9, 2013. It now will shift from popular to prolonged assistance on Jan 15, 2015, Microsoft authorities recognized last week.

Microsoft provides five decades of popular assistance and five decades of prolonged assistance for all of its Microsoft windows produces, whether they be "consumer" or "business." Mainstream assistance is the interval during which Microsoft provides no cost and regular up-dates such as both protection repairs and other areas for a item. Once a item leaves the popular assistance stage, it goes into Extended Support. During this interval, protection up-dates for a item remain no cost, but most other up-dates are only provided on a compensated basis, and require a individual Hotfix Agreement.

What's behind the newest change? Is Microsoft windows Hosting server 2008 so popular that Microsoft decided to rebel its end-of-life time frame for the item -- as has happened before in the case of Microsoft windows XP?

No, according to the Redmondian owners of the lifecycle policies and procedures. From the newest version of the organization's every quarter lifecycle newsletter:"The Microsoft policy provides a minimum of five decades of Mainstream Support or two decades of Mainstream Support after the heir item boats, whatever is longer...."Modifications to the expiry schedules for Microsoft windows Hosting server 2008 are a result of the release of Microsoft windows Hosting server 2012, giving clients the additional 2 decades of assistance."

Microsoft launched Microsoft windows Hosting server 2008 to production in Feb 2008. It launched its heir, Microsoft windows Hosting server 2008 R2, to production in September 2009. And it launched the most recent version of Microsoft windows Hosting server, Microsoft windows Hosting server 2012, to production on Aug 1, 2012.

And speaking of Microsoft windows XP assistance, Microsoft is continuing to tell clients that prolonged assistance for that item will finally end on Apr 8, 2014. There will be no protection hotfixes for the item from Microsoft after that time frame.

"If Microsoft windows XP is still being run in your atmosphere and you feel that migration will not be complete by Apr 8, 2014, or you haven't started migration yet, Microsoft is desperate to help. The impact it will have on your atmosphere, the resources that are available to help you get your migration effort under way, and heritage assistance options should be mentioned with your Technical Consideration Manager or Microsoft Consideration Associate," the Softies advised users in its newest assistance lifecycle every quarter e-mail boost.